Weather and Traffic

Royal wedding: Who will walk Meghan Markle down the aisle?

Spectators are asking who will walk Meghan Markle down the aisle Saturday after reports surfaced that her father, Thomas Markle, plans to skip the royal wedding amid a paparazzi photo scandal and health issues.

Meghan Markle is set to marry Prince Harry on Saturday at St. George’s Chapel at England’s Windsor Castle. Kensington Palace officials previously announced that Thomas Markle would walk his daughter down the aisle, but his role in the wedding appeared to be in jeopardy after he admitted to celebrity news site TMZ that he was caught staging paparazzi photos. He told TMZ on Tuesday that he would not be able to attend the wedding due to scheduled surgery.

If Thomas Markle skips the wedding, Meghan will most likely be walked down the aisle by her mother, Doria Ragland, The Telegraph reported, noting “who else could it be?” Kensington Palace officials previously announced that Ragland would accompany her daughter in the bridal car.

“My mom's a yoga instructor, but she does social work, as well, and she works specifically with the geriatric community. For me to watch this level of life-long sensitivity to nurturing and caregiving, but at the same time my mom has always been a free spirit,” Meghan Markle wrote. “We can just have so much fun together, and yet, I'll still find so much solace in her support. That duality coexists the same way it would in a best friend.”

Ragland isn’t the only one rumored to be in consideration to take Thomas Markle’s place Saturday. CNN reported that Meghan Markle’s future father-in-law, Prince Charles, and her future brother-in-law, Prince William, were also

in the running. People magazine noted that her future grandfather-in-law, Prince Philip, could also fill the role.

Thomas Markle told TMZ on Monday that he recently suffered a heart attack but that checked himself out of a hospital to attend the royal wedding. He said that after reports surfaced about his posing for paparazzi photos, he changed his mind about attending to keep from embarrassing either his daughter or the royal family. TMZ reported that text messages from his daughter prompted another change of heart.

"I hate the idea of missing one of the greatest moments in history and walking my daughter down the aisle," Thomas Markle told TMZ. "Of course I'd walk her down the aisle. This is a historic moment. I'd like to be a part of history."

Popular in News

Reader Comments
...

Next Up in Nation & World

After his unceremonious exit from Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham is moving on with a planned solo tour. The North American tour starts Oct. 7 in Portland, Oregon. Tickets go on sale Aug. 18. Rolling Stone reported that some presales will be available. Every ticket purchase includes a CD or digital copy of Buckingham’s upcoming “Solo...

The mayor in Somerville, Massachusetts, has sworn off Boston’s largest beer after the company’s founder had dinner with President Donald Trump and thanked him for tax cuts. Mayor Joseph Curtatone tweeted Sunday in response to a story about Sam Adams’ founder and his comments at Trump’s dinner. “I will never...

Delta Air Lines said Tuesday that it plans to hire more than 1,000 flight attendants for 2019. Last year, the airline had about 1,700 flight attendant openings and said it got more than 270,000 applicants. In order to qualify for the job of flight attendant at Delta, applicants must be able to work a flexible schedule, have a high school...

The first day of class at a Texas elementary school quickly went from a day of excitement to one of tragedy Monday as a mother was killed shielding several children from a car in the school’s parking lot. Kharisma Ashlee James, 33, died at the scene at Mary N. Tippin Elementary School, in El Paso. Three students were also injured, including...

When Beyonce hit the stage in Detroit for her “On the Run II” joint tour with her husband, Jay Z, she made sure to acknowledge the Queen of Soul. Aretha Franklin, who was born in Memphis but raised in the Motor City, is reportedly in poor health. >> Read more trending news Detroit Free Press reported that after the...